US-based Malawian female footballer Temwa ‘TC6’ Chawinga on Saturday hit the 20-goal target she set before the start of her debut National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) season.
She met the target after scoring the third goal for her team Kansas City (KC) Current in their 4-1 victory over San Diego Wave to move a step up to second, albeit temporarily, as Washingtone Spirit, who dropped to third, were taking on Chicago Red Stars last night.
The Scorchers forward spiced it up by breaking yet another record in the US women’s top-flight by becoming the first player to score against all the 13 teams in a season.
The 26-year-old, who broke the league’s all-time scoring record, is now seven goals clear of second-placed Zambian Barbara Banda of Orlando Pride.
A couple of weeks ago, she also set a new record by scoring in eight consecutive matches.
The 2023 overall world top scorer could not be reached for comment yesterday on her latest record.
KC Current now have 52 points with only one game to go before the play-offs. They trailed leaders Orlando Pride, who were taking on Gotham FC last night, by five points.
In a match monitored on KC Current TV, Temwa nearly opened the scoring inside the first two minutes of the match, getting a clean look at goal from about 12 yards out after weaving through the Wave’s defence. However, her left-footed strike rolled just wide.
She netted her goal in the 53rd minute as KC Current led 2-0 when she fired the ball home after being set up by Nichelle Prince.
After the match, KC Current coach Vlatko Andonovski was quoted by kansascitycurrent.com as having said: “Obviously, it’s [been] an incredible year and it’s an incredible turnaround.
“As we stated before, where the team was last year to where it is now is a testament to what these players were able to do. The new players that came in helped us build a team and perform in a way that when teams come to CPKC Stadium, they fear us.
“It’s not that we’re arrogant or cocky, I think that we use the energy from the fans, we use the energy of the stadium, we have great players and a great team, and we take that in our advantage. It’s been an awesome year so far and I hope that we’re going to go as far as possible.”
National Women’s Football Association chairperson Adellaide Migogo said Temwa has proved that she is a world-class player. “It is incredible to see how she has taken to US women’s top league by storm. She is our superstar,” she said.
